Athletic Club – Real Madrid: Alonso’s Tactical Tweak That Dismantled Athletic (0–3)

Coming into the game, Madrid had relinquished the top of the table spot in La Liga and desperately needed a win. Athletic, under Ernesto Valverde, had made San Mamés a fortress again. This matchup promised contrasting strengths, and Xabi Alonso surprised Valverde completely with a tweak that changed the game.

Tactical analysis and match report by Sebastián Parreño

San Mamés has long been one of the places where Real Madrid are forced into trench-warfare football. Valverde has imprinted his style, with a compact mid-block, devastating transitions, and the wide threat of the Williams brothers. Athletic Club’s intensity, crowd energy, and well-drilled defensive schemes frequently drag Madrid into uncomfortable battles. But under Xabi Alonso, Madrid have become a side increasingly capable of dictating the structure of games, not merely surviving them. This match became a demonstration of that evolution.

In a match where Athletic expected to impose their 4-4-2 mid block and press, with their vertical attack, Madrid dismantled the structure from the outside in. The visitors controlled the tempo, manipulated Athletic’s pressing cues, and repeatedly isolated their two world-class strikers against a back line left without cover. Let's analyze how this happened.

Madrid’s Back-Three Build-Up and the Blueprint to Beat Athletic’s 4-4-2

Athletic came out in their customary 4-4-2 out of possession, with Lekue, Vivian, Laporte, and Adama forming the back line. Berenguer and Nico Williams as wide midfielders, and Jauregizar-Rego in the double pivot. Ruiz de Galarreta partnered Guruzeta up front, but crucially, the two forwards had coordinated pressing roles. When the . . .